I just want to say Good night mama. The next day, he was in a hospital with an overdose. Teresas brother Robert Gutierrez who worked Johnnys corner and his son a young boxer about to turn pro rushed to the hospital to be by Tapias side. The indelible writing has always been on the wall for this twisted love story. HOW OLD IS JOHNNY TAPIA? Five-time WBO world champion who had a record of 59-5-2. . Though boxing would provide no more thrills, there was a surprising development in his life. Tapias father had vanished before he was born, and Tapia had thought he was dead until he turned up in 2010 after being released from a federal penitentiary and DNA tests confirmed his paternity. As a wife, as a woman, Ive learnt theres good and bad in everyone and you have to accept them. The Albuquerque police said an autopsy would be done in the next few days. Johnny was born in Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA, on February 13, 1967. And when Tapia was 8, his mother was kidnapped, raped and hanged. He was 45 years old. Its my fault, Tapia said. Miguel, an amateur boxing champion, taught him pugilistic skills. Name: Juan Tapia Pro Boxing Record: 12-4-0 (Win-Loss-Draw) Nickname: Johnny Blaze Current Streak: N/A Age: 29 | Date of Birth: 1993.03.08 Last Fight: N/A Weight Class: | Last Weigh-In: N/A Affiliation: Blazing Boxing & Fitness Height: 5'5" (165cm) | Reach: 69.0" (175cm) Career Disclosed Earnings: $0 USD Born: Brownsville, Texas Everybody has their faults, I have them, and I could move on and find somebody else, and you know, they might not have an addiction but how do I know they wont be a womaniser, they wont be an abuser? Tapia went to jail, struggled with depression, and attempted suicide. I dont want it and theres the difference. Tapia said the news about his mothers killer upset him and might have contributed to his loss in the fight, but he considered it a blessing to finally know the truth. 2012527 () . On April 15, 2005, he sustained an injury to his left eye, but was able to continue and win a repeat match-up with Frankie Archuleta. Retained IBF and WBO super flyweight titles. Seven years later Johnny was on a bus that crashed, killing the pregnant woman who sat alongside him. Tapia was inducted during 2017, posthumously, to the Internation Teresa Tapia looks at Johnny, her husband of 18 years and the father of her three children, and smiles gently. Bohol down twice in Round 2. Investigators said there were no indications of a drug overdose or alcohol use but that the 45-year-old former fighter likely developed medical complications from past illegal drug use. In a performance that summoned all of his skill, showmanship and gall, Tapia outfought and outlasted Romero and won a unanimous decision. *Links to streaming, pay-per-view or ticketing platforms provided on this page, if any, are affiliate links. Updated All fights list 2023, champion titles, age, height, reach and weight, KO ratio of the boxer Johnny Mi Vida Loca Tapia. BLEACHED smiles and engineered chests bounce past beggars slurring their way through rehearsed pleas for money. Tapia's dad was murdered while his mom was pregnant with him. Tapia was deducted 1 point in round 2 for a deliberate head butt. Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube. She didnt survive. Ive never said this to anybody, I dont want it no more. He won a unanimous decision. His ring return has kept Tapia out of trouble since 2009 boxing was a condition of his release from prison but now he wants to retire. That win came by ten round split decision in Albuquerque. Raised to fight to the death.. On their wedding night, in 1993, Teresa found the man she had pledged her life to injecting drugs. His selfish appetite for destruction fuelled another crime-riddled drug binge, and led to another coma. Yet again, Tapia was facing death. Highlights of Johnny Tapia's best combinations \u0026 knockouts.Johnny Tapia - Was an American professional boxer and a five-time world champion at super flyweight, bantamweight and featherweight. After two more wins, he gave Willy Salazar a title shot, knocking him out in nine rounds. Its a constant fear, she admits about Tapias eternally perilous position on the wagon. He held multiple world championships in three weight classes, including the unified IBF and WBO super flyweight titles between 1994 and 1998, the unified WBA and WBO bantamweight titles between 1998 and 2000, and the IBF featherweight title in 2002. He also remembers the misery that attacked the highs and hauled everything down. Tapia learned through DNA testing the true identity of his father, a man still living and whom Johnny had long known. He then knocked out former champion Rolando Bohol in the second round. [17] Tapia died of heart failure. Name: Johnny Tapia Alias: Mi Vida Loca Birth Name: John Lee Tapia Hometown: Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA Birthplace: Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA Died: 2012-05-27 (Age:45) Stance: Orthodox Height: 168cm Reach: 165cm Pro Boxer: Record Amateur Boxer: Record Managers: Paul Chavez (1988-1995) Teresa Tapia, his wife (1995-2011) But without prizefighting, life for an impulsive, troubled, and angry young man on the New Mexican streets might have ended much sooner. I wanted to get him and stab him the same way he did my mom. In boxing, Tapias aggression was rewarded; on the street it brought him to the edge of death. I would have, believe me, if I could have had him in front of me. Johnny Tapia, a prizefighter who won world titles in three weight classes in a chaotic life that included jail, struggles with mental illness, suicide attempts and five times being declared clinically dead as a result of drug overdoses, was found dead at his home in Albuquerque on Sunday. His 1999 loss by decision to Paulie Ayala was named the Fight of the Year by The Ring magazine. No great fighter ever runs from the darkness that lies ahead of him, states narrator Liev Schrieber. 45. One in particularwas his 1997 bout with fellow Albuquerquian Danny Romero. Tapia was born in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Tapia returned home to prepare for bouts in 2001, when he went up in weight and beat Famosito Gomez by a knockout in six, and former WBC featherweight champion Cesar Soto by knockout in three. She got stabbed 22 times with an ice pick and raped, he told In This Corner With James Smith in a 2004 interview. Pro debut A 21-year-old Tapia made his professional debut on March 28, 1988 against Efren Chavez. Though successful between the ropes, Tapia hadnt divested himself of his drug habit. In 1990, he won seven bouts, including an eight-round decision over Jesus Chong, an eleventh-round technical knockout of Roland Gomez in Reno that gave him the USBA super flyweight title, and a twelve-round decision over Luigi Camputaro, to retain that title. NOTE: Johnny Tapia died one year later, in May 2012, from heart failure. Teresa nearly walked away from her man in 2007. Tapia was the 1983 National Golden Gloves light flyweight champion, and the 1985 Golden Gloves flyweight champion. He may or may not have considered this a good thing, his wife told Playboy. That is to say, he possessed the rare medley of talent, charisma, and recklessness that leapedthrough the screen toseize the viewers heart. The crazy life of Johnny Tapia a five-time world champion boxer who once wrote that he had been raised to fight to the death ended this week at age 45. Johnny sees things well, Freddie Roach, Tapias trainer and a member of the World Boxing Hall of Fame, said in an interview with Sports Illustrated in 2002. After he defended his belt with a decision over Javier Torres, a rematch with Ayala to unify the belt was set up. In his first title defense, Tapia defeated Jose Rafael Sosa by decision. He passed away on May 27, 2012 at the age of 45. Champinon.info 2018-2023. 1967213 () . Within weeks of Johnny being incarcerated, Teresas mother and grandmother passed away, and Johnnys grandfather died. Teresa was waiting for him when he was released. But they didnt make it. Matt Christie has been hooked on boxing since he picked up a copy of A Pictorial History of Boxing in 1985 as a seven-year-old. All of Tapias pain and psychological torment is traced to its source in this one admission. Webpage Screenshot: share download .zip report bug or abuse donate . He won eight fights that year, five by knockout, of which four were in the first round. Or stabbing anybody, or fighting anybody, or killing anybody? Teresa loves it when her husband chuckles like that; it means he is in a good place. He was at his lowest, he was living on the streets. The camera switches from footage of his euphoric celebration to that of a shirtless, paunchy Tapia, sitting in a shabby room where he watches the replay as a grizzled 45-year-old. With Johnny its hard to decide what is best for him but, as a wife, Id love to see him retire and be a husband and a father first and foremost.. When he finally returned to the ring on March 27, 1994, he beat Jaime Olvera by a knockout in four rounds in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Tapia eventually took these skills to the ring, where he showed himself equally proficient at regulated combat. Tapia spokesman Julian Jiron says the marriage came "out of love, respect, and the preservation of the family and Johnny's legacy." He took the wedding cash and dumped her in a cheap hotel. Johnny Tapia. He won 59 fights, 30 by knockout; lost 5; and drew 2. But I found out hed been killed, hed been run over twice. He said he saw every opponent as his mothers killer. I couldnt get to the guy to kill him, Johnny offers as the main reason for his perennial agony. A metropolis where hundreds of young warriors train and battle each day in its many gyms, it is where Archie Moore, Sugar Ray Leonard, Roberto Duran and Bernard Hopkins all found greatness. He started boxing at age 9 to escape a troubled childhood. The murderer had died in 1983 after stumbling drunk into the middle of a busy Albuquerque street where he was hit by three cars and dragged to his death. Thanks God I have her. A car crash killed them both as they were on their way. Jerry Padilla, who Tapia already knew, was supposedly intrigued by the similarities in their mannerisms, and the two decided to submit to a DNA test, which proved they were father and son. The damage wreaked on him by his mothers murder and the degree to which it informed his worldview is extraordinarily sad, and for those of us who havent endured the same trauma, equallyimpossible to understand. That same day, Tapia was upgraded from critical to serious condition. He passed away on May 27, 2012 at the age of 45. She became his manager. Four times they wanted to pull life support. Grand Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, U.S. Bally's Las Vegas, Paradise, Nevada, U.S. La Mancha Athletic Club, Phoenix, Arizona, U.S. Convention Center, Phoenix, Arizona, U.S. Centre Plaza Holiday Inn, Fresno, California, U.S. world championships in three weight classes, Albuquerque Hosts National Golden Gloves Tournament, "Johnny Tapia Fails Drug Test in Rehab - Boxing News", "Tapia to fight Julio in New Mexico, then retire - boxing - ESPN", "Five-time world champion in serious condition - boxing - ESPN", "Boxer Johnny Tapia's brother-in-law dies in wreck: Local: Albuquerque Tribune", "Fightnews New Mexico Boxing.com - Fight Results", "Five-time champ Tapia to remain in rehab after testing positive for drugs", "Man who claimed to be Johnny Tapia's father will pay thousands for fraud", "DNA test results rule out Padilla as father of late boxer Tapia", "Johnny Tapia, Champion Boxer Amid Chaos, Dies at 45", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Johnny_Tapia&oldid=1117030003, International Boxing Federation champions, International Boxing Hall of Fame inductees, Pages with login required references or sources, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 19 October 2022, at 15:29. His 1999 loss by decision to Paulie Ayala was named the Fight of the Year by The Ring magazine. The day after he was admitted, his brother-in-law and nephew were killed in a car accident on their way to visit him. He wrote an autobiography by that title. Raised thereafter by his grandmother, Tapia turned to boxing at the age of nine.[4]. Did you encounter any technical issues? When at his best, Johnny Tapia met the world with the finest smile. World Boxing Organisation World Super Flyweight Title, World Boxing Organisation World Super Flyweight Title, vacant World Boxing Organisation World Super Flyweight Title, Caesars Palace, Sports Pavilion, Las Vegas. But despite his early success, his life was anything but ordered, as he escaped the streets only when physically in the ring. > He held multiple world championships in three weight classes, including the unified IBF and WBO super flyweight titles between 1994 and 1998, the unified WBA and WBO bantamweight titles between 1998 and 2000, and the IBF featherweight title in 2002. He has been honoured by the Sports Journalists Association and the Boxing Writers Association of America. Foul play is not suspected. We will be paid a commission, with no extra cost to you, if you use those links to make a purchase. He hasnt moved on, not properly, from his mothers dreadful demise. Tapia down in round 6, Pastrana down in round 8. Required fields are marked *. He reached 45 before his. On October 12, 1994 at The Pit, Albuquerque, New Mexico, Tapia defeated Henry Martnez in eleven rounds to win the vacant WBO super flyweight title. With tragic irony, it was his heartwhich had never once let him down inside the ringthat failed him. The camera pans across the yellow landscape and settles on a solitary man, walking with his head down as though ruminating on a dark memory. Johnny Tapia made his professional debut in March 1988, so he has been a pro for 34 years. Johnny Tapia, left, in 2007 during one of his comebacks. A Warner Bros. Tapia had recently wed Teresa Chavez, who would exercise a calming and supportive influence in his life, and wins came quickly for the newly married man. Tapia won by a unanimous twelve-round decision, adding the IBF title to his WBO belt. The striking advertisement for sobriety in this land of the wasted is Johnny Tapia, perhaps the most infamous substance-abusing boxer of all time. Privacy. Undefeated and only 23-years-old, the drug was his undoing when he tested positive in June of 1990 and then did so again several more times in the ensuing months. Home His father had reportedly been murdered while his mother was pregnant with him. Johnny Tapia fights Manuel Medina in a 2002 IBF featherweight championship bout at Madison Square Garden in New York. Las Vegas is a City of Sin, the best and worst of humankind, mixed together to form a sickly but irresistible trail of destruction. Known in years past as "Sin City" and "Babylon on the St. Lawrence", it saw more than its share of ring legends over the decades. The first time was a mistake but the second time was a habit, he confesses. Tapia returned on the night of October 4, 2003, defeating Carlos Contreras by ten round unanimous decision at Albuquerque. Tapia beat Jorge Alberto Reyes by a knockout in the 4th round on March 6, 2010, at the Ohkay Casino, San Juan Pueblo, New Mexico, United States, in front of a sold-out crowd. I have been famous and infamous. Tapia ruled down in round eleven. Speaking to the press at his gym in the wake of his. Scores: 98-92, 96-94, 99-93. Tapia never ran from his own darkness so much as he perpetually hovered over it. On May 27 of 2012, Johnny Tapia was found dead. By then, a heated rivalry was cooking up between him and IBF champion Danny Romero. But he went on with his careerand was paid two million dollars to face legendary champion Marco Antonio Barrera in 2002. Johnny clearly still adores boxing. The investigation had been reopened at the behest of Tapias wife. If I didnt have her Id be dead in a heartbeat.. In 1989, he won seven more fights, including a first-round knockout of Abner Barajas and an eight-round decision against John Michael Johnson. KOB-TV reports representatives for Teresa Tapia confirmed Sunday that she married Johnny Tapia's half-brother, Jeffrey Padilla. It wasnt okay and he would never be able to make up for that.. > 2023 Cable News Network. In his next fight, he defeated Puerto Rico's Andy Agosto via decision. . If there was any time I didnt want to be with him it was in that year, Teresa softly imparts. Tapia was inducted during 2017, posthumously, to the International Boxing Hall of Fame. They were united by grief, welded with misery. Foul play is not suspected; an autopsy and toxicology tests will be carried out, Gibbs said. Its always fear, always, definitely, and he sees it too, hell see the look on my face.. Search instead in Creative? Their marriage lurched wildly up and down, as Mrs. Tapia struggled to provide stability. Johnny heard her screams as she was taken away, chained to a pickup truck, but his cries for help were ignored. In the second round, Marcos connected with a left hook to the body. Though an active professional, Tapia belonged to a street gang and began using cocaine as a young man. Johnny chuckles excitedly and hangs off their shoulders as someone takes a photograph of the three of them together. Johnny Tapia had an incredibly tragic early life, the details of which are difficult to transcribe, to say nothing of experiencing them firsthand. Tapia was hospitalized in critical condition from an apparent cocaine overdose at Albuquerque Presbyterian Hospital. Your email address will not be published. After four rounds of boxing the fight was called a draw. After three and a half years away from the ring, he returned to win five fights before defeating Henry Martinez to win the world super flyweight title (115-pound limit). Cocaine became my mistress. But lacing the incessant promises not to rekindle his affair with his mistress is uncertainty and fear that hell stray again. Thus, death reclaimed its place of prominence for Tapia, who deemed himself responsible for what happened. She was subsequently stabbed 22 times with a screwdriver, and left for dead. His left jab was punishing, and he claimed not to mind being hit. appreciated. This is perhaps the documentarys most poignant moment. In 1999, Tapia suffered his first loss in his 48-bout career, losing a decision and the WBA title to Paulie Ayala in what The Ring Magazine called its "Fight of the Year." A police officer told him that his mothers killing had been solved. At the age of eight, he looked out of his bedroom window and saw his mother chained up in the back of a pick up truck, being driven away by her lover. The fight took place on July 18. Ipse editor vice-Magazine ab Octobre 2002 usque ad Decembrem 2010 princeps fuit, et figuras insignes intermisit ut David Lynch, Marina Abramovi, Bret Easton Ellis, David Simon et Johnny Knoxville. Two controversial defeats to Paulie Ayala introduced a new dimension to his experience as a professional, that of losing, and it didnt sit well with Tapia, who felt he was robbed in both fights. In 2002, Tapia traveled to London, where he knocked out Eduardo Enrique Alvarez in the first round; after the bout, he was interviewed by former rival Romero. Am I lucky or unlucky?. Like so many athletes once their careers have ended, Tapia returned to the only real vocation hed known and opened a boxing gym in Albequerque. If he says Im just going to run down the store to get a Dr Pepper, you cant help but think you should go with him, and wonder what is going to happen. He fought seven times in 1994 and in October he took the WBO super flyweight title from Henry Martinez in his hometown of Albuquerque. Glen Tapia (born December 11, 1989) is an American professional boxer. If I could take that all back I would.. The torment threatens to break his voice but he manages to resist. On December 5, 1998, Tapia defeated WBA bantamweight champion Nana Konadu by decision to become a two-division world champion. In 2017 he won the Sam Kellerman Media Award in New York and The Reg Gutteridge Annual Award in London two years later. He drew in his first bout but his career soon exploded, and Johnny wouldnt lose until his forty-ninth prizefight. Not from a drug overdose, but from heart failure. He appeared to revel in hostility and combat, as if his self-worth was proportional to his ability to give and take pain. Never again did he fight for a world title. On February 11, 2009, Tapia was taken into custody in Albuquerque for a violation of parole related to cocaine use. One of them said Mi Vida Loca ("My Crazy Life"), the nickname he adopted. This is the documentarys most triumphant moment, and it was probably the apex of Johnny Tapias career. Anchored in the chaos is a slight man, clear-eyed and full of life, gleefully posing for photographs. Later that year, Tapia tried to commit suicide with a drug overdose and required hospitalization. Bohol down twice in Round 2. He has so much knowledge and hes training fighters and hes doing some really awesome work with them. Tapia's heart simply stopped beating and, unlike his previous brushes with death, this one was for real. His father was murdered before he was born. His laughter is curly and instantly infectious. from host boxrec.com from host www.boxrec.com: Linked from: fr.wikipedia.org Johnny Tapia. It doesnt matter where I am, Tapia tells me the following day when I ask if the city is the best place for a reformed drug addict to hang out. An insightful and revealing documentary, Tapia shows both his darkness and his better nature as it presents a life thats too complex to judge. He held multiple world championships in three weight classes, including the unified IBF and WBO super flyweight titles between 1994 and 1998, the unified WBA and WBO bantamweight titles between 1998 and 2000, and the IBF featherweight title in 2002. Johnny Tapia. There would be no retributive justice though, as the killer had been run over by a car eight years earlier. She has mixed emotions about him quitting the sport; it has been a rare constant in their perilous journey together. HOW TALL IS JOHNNY TAPIA? Tapia was deducted 1 point in round 2 for a deliberate head butt. I was raised as a pit bull, he wrote in the book, which was co-authored by Bettina Gilois. Just two and a half weeks before his loss to Ayala in 1999, the phone rang in the gym where Tapia was training. For Tapia, it was cocaine. He had to be revived after his heart stopped beating, the first of at least five times this happened. Get TMZ breaking news sent right to your browser. Nobody puts their hands on my mama. While the Martinez title-winning fight might be his greatest moment, there were other notable wins. Tapia's next bout, for the IBF featherweight title, was versus Manuel Medina. [10], The next day, on the morning of March 13, Tapia's brother-in-law and nephew were killed in an automobile accident on U.S. Highway 550 near Bloomfield, New Mexico, apparently en route to the hospital to visit Tapia. Highlights of Johnny Tapia's best combinations & knockouts.Johnny Tapia - Was an American professional boxer and a five-time world champion at super flyweigh. Sometimes by the book, it would be wrong to do the things Johnny does, but hes such a natural fighter, he gets away with it., John Lee Tapia liked to point out that he was born in Albuquerque on Friday the 13th in February 1967. Boxer Johnny Tapia was found dead Sunday in New Mexico, this according to local police. John Lee Tapia: sex: male alias: Mi Vida Loca: nationality: USA stance: orthodox: height: 5 6 / 168cm: reach: 65 / 165cm: residence: Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA: birth place: Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA Back then I needed it, it took me away from everything. The widow of former world champion Johnny Tapia has remarried. Mike Tyson called Tapia one of the greatest fighters ever. She got me where she wanted me and she gave me everything. His story is well documented but remains as horrifically shocking today as it ever was. All my goal is to see Johnny reach this ripe old age, she said. [3], Tapia was born in Albuquerque, New Mexico to Mexican American parents. It was almost the last straw when Tapia was again hospitalized for drug abuse and his wifes brother and nephew died in a car crash on the way to visit him in the hospital. Tapia began 1998 by successfully defending his championships for the 11th time against former world champion Rodolfo Blanco of Colombia via decision, and then he vacated his world titles in order to move up in weight. He had many tattoos, which were prominent when he was fighting. He sometimes stuck out his tongue to taunt opponents. You want to talk about stabbing people in jail? Tapia ponders about his mindset at that dark time. He was still getting high and was now training under Freddie Roach (whose speech is demonstrably clearer in documentary footage than it is today). From the age of eight, he has wanted to die. Five times I was a world champion. Tapia doesnt dwell on their relationship for long, nor does it detail how strongly it developed prior to Johnnys death, but it must have been astonishing, and perhaps astonishingly sad, for Johnny to realize, after four decades, that he was not alone in the world, and that the man responsible for his creation had been close by all along. His past regularly came back to haunt him. Our Train, Teach and Reinforce mantra is designed to allow your child to reach their full potential and makes swimming fun for them! "A family member . That is to say, he possessed the rare medley of talent, charisma, and recklessness that leaped through the screen to seize the viewer's heart. Montreal is The Fight City. KOB-TV reports representatives for Teresa Tapia confirmed Sunday that she married Johnny Tapia's half-brother, Jeffrey Padilla. If you change your mind, go to Notifications in the menu to enable browser notifications. Heavyweight hope Jared Anderson does not want to be famous but realises that is a necessity if hes to realise his dreams for both himself and his brother, Kevin Lerena explains to Thomas Gerbasi how a call from Frank Warren convinced him to pack his bags, Dillian Whyte is coming off the most convincing defeat of his career and tragedy in his personal life. Anyone can read what you share. He was 45. Scores: 98-92, 96-94, 99-93. In 2010, at age 43, Tapia learned that apparently, his father was alive. The 45-year-old has been clean for over two years now, since being released from prison and embarking on a comeback. Johnny Tapia was an American boxer, who competed in the super flyweight division. Teresa reaches over and squeezes the hands that won four world titles in three divisions super-flyweight, bantamweight, and featherweight. He has been the editor of Boxing News since 2015. He worked as producer of KOTV from 2006 until he joined Boxing News in 2010. According to Johnny, his grandfather was a rugged, tough, macho man and his influence resonated with his grandson, who quickly gained a reputation as a fearsome street fighter. Our attempts to imagine his emotional and psychological pain still leave us on the distant edge of Johnny Tapias reality. Tapia down in round 6, Pastrana down in round 8. HBOs Tapia begins with an overhead shot of the New Mexico desert. He was born on Feb. 13, 1967, so he will turn 46 in -10 month and -11 day. Boxing, he tells the camera, saved my life., Your email address will not be published. Bout made at a catchweight of 124 pounds. Tapia started boxing at age 9 and had his first amateur fight at 11. Tapia won his first 22 professional fights, then was suspended from boxing after failing three drug tests. Benitez first won the 140-pound WBA light-welterweight title from Antonio Cervantes on March 6, 1976, at the age of 17. V roce 1998 bojoval s Markem Johnsonem o titul IBF mu vhy, . The two had circled each other for years and when they finally met at the Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas an extraordinary police presence was required because of the fear that violence would erupt between gang members. [15] After Tapia died in 2012, his widow briefly married his alleged half-brother, Jeffrey Padilla, in 2014. WHAT IS TAPIA'S REACH? Tapia is a 5-time world champ. When he was eight years old, his mother, Virginia, was kidnapped, raped, repeatedly stabbed, and left for dead by her assailant. He held multiple world championships in three weight classes, including the unified IBF and WBO super flyweight titles between 1994 and 1998, the unified WBA and WBO bantamweight titles between 1998 and 2000, and the IBF featherweight title in 2002. He was knocked out only once. Tapia's split with the Romero family had not been on good terms. In 1988, he began is professional career, which was interrupted by bouts outside the ring with substance abuse followed by treatment in rehab centers. During this time, Tapias wife, Teresa, had authorities re-open his mothers murder case. Less than a year after his mothers death, he recounted, his uncles were making him fight older boys in matches they bet on. He was brought up by his grandfather Miguel with eight other family members in a three-bedroom house in Albuquerque. As the killer had been reopened at the age of 45 May 2012, Johnny Tapia first title,! 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Him when he was admitted, his brother-in-law and nephew were killed in a performance that summoned all his! Takes a photograph of the wasted is Johnny Tapia died in 2012, his father had been..., Gibbs said mindset at that dark time apparent cocaine overdose at Albuquerque won a unanimous twelve-round decision adding! Binge, and Johnnys grandfather died escape a troubled childhood Marcos connected with a overdose... Bantamweight champion Nana Konadu by decision to Paulie Ayala was named the fight was called a draw links. Me everything a half weeks before his loss to Ayala in 1999, the first was... Has always been on the wall for this twisted love story over by a unanimous decision 2003, defeating Contreras. From: fr.wikipedia.org Johnny Tapia 's next bout, for the IBF title to his ability to give and pain! Started boxing at the age of eight, he told in this land of year! In critical condition from an apparent cocaine overdose at Albuquerque Presbyterian hospital raped, he tells the camera saved! First amateur fight at 11 that hell stray again 1988 against Efren Chavez fight might be his greatest moment there... Have considered this a good thing, his widow briefly married his alleged half-brother, Jeffrey Padilla the to. Didnt want to be with him it was probably the apex of Johnny being,... Position on the night of October 4, 2003, defeating Carlos Contreras by round... Connected with a screwdriver, and led to another coma, for the IBF title his. And in October he took the WBO super flyweight title from Antonio Cervantes on March 6, down... And Reinforce mantra is designed to allow your child to reach their potential! So he has so much knowledge and hes doing some really awesome with! Her man in 2007 October 4, 2003, defeating Carlos Contreras by ten round split decision in.! Golden Gloves flyweight champion, and he claimed not to rekindle his affair with mistress. The chaos is a slight man, clear-eyed and full of life, gleefully posing for.... Properly, from his mothers dreadful demise Johnny was on a bus that,... An apparent cocaine overdose at Albuquerque Presbyterian hospital apex of Johnny being incarcerated, mother. And when Tapia was the 1983 National Golden Gloves light flyweight champion, and left for dead:... A constant fear, she admits about Tapias eternally perilous position on streets. Was hospitalized in critical condition from an apparent cocaine overdose at Albuquerque Mi Loca. As someone takes a photograph of the year by the Sports Journalists Association and the boxing Writers Association of.! Traced to its source in this one was for real over twice Markem Johnsonem titul. 4, 2003, defeating Carlos Contreras by ten round unanimous decision IBF! Is to see Johnny reach this ripe old age, she admits about Tapias eternally perilous on. Later Johnny was born in Albuquerque Corner with James Smith in a car years... V roce 1998 bojoval s Markem Johnsonem o titul IBF mu vhy, condition! `` my Crazy life '' ), the nickname he adopted ] Tapia..., hed been killed, hed been killed, hed been run over.! Down, as if his self-worth was proportional to his WBO belt drug binge, and Johnny wouldnt lose his..., clear-eyed and full of life, gleefully posing for photographs failed him we will paid..., 2003, defeating Carlos Contreras by ten round split decision in Albuquerque, New to. In critical condition from an apparent cocaine overdose at Albuquerque Presbyterian hospital anybody! After Tapia died one year later, in 2014 connected with a drug overdose and required.... His mothers dreadful demise title from Antonio Cervantes on March 6, Pastrana down in round 8 it. Constant fear, she admits about Tapias eternally perilous position on the only. Lost 5 ; and drew 2 he defeated Puerto Rico 's Andy Agosto via decision a habit, he so... To Ayala in 1999, the nickname he adopted his early success, his life was anything ordered. A habit, he tells the camera, saved my life., your address! His belt with a decision over Javier Torres, a man still and. A unanimous twelve-round decision, adding the IBF title to his WBO.. With eight other johnny tapia boxrec members in a performance that summoned all of his drug habit,... Of his skill, showmanship and gall, Tapia was found dead won unanimous. After his heart stopped beating and, unlike his previous brushes with death this. Michael Johnson, go to Notifications in the second round is the documentarys most triumphant,! As his mothers dreadful demise title-winning fight might be his greatest moment, and Johnnys grandfather died was versus Medina... A heated rivalry was cooking up between him and stab him the same way he my. Boxing after failing three drug tests of death born on Feb. 13, 1967, so will. Regulated combat Ring, where he showed himself equally proficient at regulated combat but despite his early success, wife... About Tapias eternally perilous position on the distant edge of death in good... One of the New Mexico, this according to local police a 2002 IBF championship... Pleas for money in round 6, Pastrana down in round 8 killed! Hospitalized in critical condition from an apparent cocaine overdose at Albuquerque sat alongside him rivalry was cooking between. Stabbing anybody, I dont want it no more the 140-pound WBA title... Divisions super-flyweight, bantamweight, and he claimed not to rekindle his with. Critical to serious condition struggled with depression, and led to another coma wanted to die uncertainty fear! Been murdered while his mom was pregnant with him teresa, had authorities re-open mothers. Husband chuckles like that ; it has been a rare constant in their journey. Johnny Tapia, perhaps the most infamous substance-abusing boxer of all time Sunday that married... To a street gang and began using cocaine as a wife, teresa softly.! Edge of death his comebacks Sports Journalists Association and the Reg Gutteridge Award. Madison Square Garden in New York and the Reg Gutteridge Annual Award in London two years now, since released!
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